The Tuscaloosa Thread asked the two men running to become the next mayor of Northport to say in their own words why voters should choose them when they head to the polls in Tuesday's runoff election.

Dale Phillips' column making his case is included below in its entirety.

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"As a career law enforcement officer and chairman of the Northport Planning and Zoning Commission, my candidacy is a continuation of my desire to serve our community and my sincere belief that our government leaders should be focused on doing the right thing – not the political thing. That is my commitment to the people of Northport. I want to unite people in our community, bring common sense, conservative values to City Hall, and make sure every citizen's voice is heard in our city government.

I want to work with our local economic development groups and the Chamber of Commerce to develop – and then implement – a long-term plan for how we can recruit jobs and industry to Northport, while maintaining and expanding our roads. I'll also bring business and education leaders together to make sure our local schools are producing students who have the skills employers are looking for so they can get a job when they graduate. Supporting local athletics and building a sports complex are also priorities for me.

We start by bringing the business and education groups together to develop a plan that gives our children and those looking to learn a new skill or trade their education for future jobs. We add to those tax incentives and investments in developing local resources to accommodate and attract new businesses or help existing businesses expand. We focus on developing our quality of life, such as building a sports complex and revitalizing older parts of town to attract more people - especially young people like those graduating from the University of Alabama. But we have to make the right investments if we want to attract people.

I think we lack a long-term vision for our city, and we need leadership that will develop that long-term plan. We also need leadership that will unite people and find solutions to problems and quit making excuses on why we can't work together. Lastly, we need leadership that will invest in our community - both in economic development and quality of life issues - a top priority.

Our city employee’s work hard and they deserve to be commended for the job they do. But there are always ways we can improve. I want to start by working with our leaders in the State Legislature and our leaders in Congress to ensure that all available state and federal resources are being taken advantage of."

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